MSTP Blog
Dr. Paul Farmer Spends Day at Vanderbilt, Sharing Perspective on Global Health and Service
Feb. 28, 2018—“How does a university engage in [global health in] an ethically sound and meaningful manner?” asked Dr. Paul Farmer, M.D., Ph.D, on the heels of a 20+ hour trip from Sierra Leone, to open the 2018 Philip W. Felts Lecture in Humanities on Monday, February 19 at noon. Later that day, he conversed with Dr....
Honors and Awards – February 2018
Feb. 28, 2018—Congratulations to big/little pair Caleb Ford (G2) and Stephanie Dudzinski (G3) on receiving F30 NRSA fellowships! Lindsay Klofas (G2), Aaron Lim (G2), and Jack Walker (G2, not pictured) received travel awards to attend the 2018 AAP/ASCI/APSA Annual Meeting. Congratulations!
MSTPublications: February 2018
Feb. 28, 2018—Congratulations to all of our MSTP students on their successful publications! Take a look at the great work our students are doing. First Author Original Research: Variable Cell Line Pharmacokinetics Contribute to Non-Linear Treatment Response in Heterogeneous Cell Populations. McKenna MT, Weis JA, Quaranta V, Yankeelov TE. Ann Biomed Eng. 2018 Feb 26. doi: 10.1007/s10439-018-2001-2. [Epub ahead of...
Alumni Profile: Robert W. Mahley, M.D., Ph.D, Combining Vision and Work
Feb. 27, 2018—by Abin Abraham (G1) In 1964, the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine restructured its curriculum to encourage medical students to engage in rigorous biomedical research and to combine graduate school courses with medical school classes to obtain an M.D.-Ph.D. degree. That year, Robert (Bob) W. Mahley came to Vanderbilt and entered the combined program to...
Student Spotlight: Paula Marincola Smith
Feb. 26, 2018—While a medical student at Vanderbilt, Paula Marincola Smith thought, more than once, about joining the MSTP. She eventually convinced herself against the idea, not being settled on a single career path and having no laboratory research experience. She was intrigued by science; but, instead of spending time in lab, she immersed herself in medicine,...
Justice and Advocacy for Health in Tennessee
Feb. 24, 2018—Justice and Advocacy for Health in Tennessee On a cold morning in February, over fifty medical students from schools across the state congregated in Light Hall, ready to learn new advocacy skills and workshop solutions to health problems in Tennessee. The introductory speaker, Josh Cockroft (VUSM M4) clarified the goal of the symposium, titled “Justice...
Student Spotlight: Science and Art with Ayaka Sugiura (G2)
Feb. 23, 2018—Student Spotlight: Science and Art with Ayaka Sugiura (G2) In July of last year, artwork by Ayaka Sugiura (G2) was featured on the cover of Cell Metabolism, accompanying a review titled, “Similarities and Distinctions of Cancer and Immune Metabolism in Inflammation and Tumors,” by Gabriela Andrejeva, Ph.D., a post-doctoral fellow in the lab of Ayaka’s...
Alumni Profile: Dean Jeffrey Balser, M.D., Ph.D. (‘90)
Feb. 2, 2018—by Ayesha Muhammad (M2) and Maggie Axelrod (G1) Medical Center North, which still evokes the sense of being an antique building, boasts the title of being the “original” Vanderbilt Hospital. Deep in the corners of the third floor however, it sports a wood-paneled side corridor, which seems out of place as compared to the rest...
The Healer’s Art
Jan. 31, 2018—“The good physician treats the disease; the great physician treats the patient who has the disease.” — William Osler. The Healer’s Art course is a time-tested, studied, and proven curriculum, created over the past 25 years by the pioneering physician and counselor, Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen. It is now taught in a majority of medical...
MSTPublications: January 2018
Jan. 30, 2018—Congratulations to all of our MSTP students on their successful publications! Take a look at the great work our students are doing. First Author Original Research: Aging Donor-Derived Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells Exhibit Reduced Reactive Oxygen Species Loads and Increased Differentiation Potential Following Serial Expansion on a PEG-PCL Copolymer Substrate. Balikov DA, Crowder SW, Lee JB, Lee Y,...
“The Effort Report”: A Podcast about Academic Medicine and Research
Jan. 30, 2018—by Camille Wang (M1) “The Effort Report,” a podcast hosted by Professors Elizabeth Matsui, MD, and Roger Peng, PhD, explores the intricacies and practicalities of academia. The show is directed at those who are in faculty positions, considering an academic career, or interested in academic medicine and/or research. Since its inception in July 2016, the...
Life in the MSTP – January 2018
Jan. 30, 2018—The first MSTP happy hour of 2018 was held at Sportsman's. Everyone was thrilled to celebrate the incredible Melissa Krasnove as she moves into her new position as a Training Grant Specialist. She will be missed! Matthew De Niear (M4) and Grace Fletcher were married this past fall at Davidson College, North Carolina where they first...
Alumni Corner – January 2018
Jan. 30, 2018—Brian Grieb (’16) was selected to be the Vanderbilt Inpatient Medicine Chief Resident for 2019. Jacci Clauss (’16, Psychiatry Resident at MGH), and Richard Guyer (’16, General Surgery Resident at MGH) were married in December.
Honors and Awards – January 2018
Jan. 30, 2018—Alex Sundermann (G3) was awarded an F30. Congratulations on your first NIH grant, Alex! Hernan Gonzalez (G2) received the award for overall best poster at the 2018 North America Neuromodulation Society Annual Meeting! Congratulations to the following MSTP mentors for their recent accomplishments! Justin Balko, PhD, PharmD (PI to Maggie Axelrod, G1) received the Era...
Words of Wisdom: Starting Graduate School
Dec. 21, 2017—“I believe graduate school starts when you enter G2. You are no longer being paid by the MSTP, so you have the pressure to be productive since you're probably being paid off a grant. You no longer have (as much) class as an excuse to hinder your productivity. You also realize that the first year...